Spain introduces 100 per cent tax on properties owned by non-EU residents
Spain‘s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has announced that the country is planning to impose a tax of up to 100 per cent on properties purchased by non-residents from outside the European Union, such as the United Kingdom.
Sánchez hailed the move as “unprecedented” but asserted it is required to cope with Spain’s housing emergency. “The West faces a decisive challenge: To not become a society divided into two classes, the rich landlords and the poor tenants,” he said.
In 2023, non-EU residents purchased 27,000 properties in Spain, Sánchez told an economic forum in Madrid. However, he claims they were “not to live in” but “to make money from them”.
According to the Spanish property registry, sales to foreigners—including people from inside the EU—account for 15 per cent of the Spanish housing market. That equates to 87,000 out of 583,000 sales in 2023.
“Which, in the context of shortage that we are in, [we] obviously cannot allow,” he added.
Sánchez maintains that the move is planned to prioritise available homes for residents. He did not offer any further details about how the levy would work or a timeline for how he plans to present it to Parliament and get it approved, something he has struggled with during his tenure.
The Prime Minister’s office described the proposed tax as a means to limit the buying of homes by “non-resident non-EU foreigners”. In Spain, people are classed as non-residents if they live in the country for less than 183 days in a year.
It added: “The tax burden that they will have to pay in case of purchase will be increased up to 100% of the value of the property, in line with countries such as Denmark and Canada.” The government said the proposal would be finished “after careful study”.
This move comes as several locations in Spain hit back against the negative effects of mass tourism.